Cincinnati Chinese Chamber hosts Dragon gala

It’s the year of the dragon, and the Greater Cincinnati Chinese Chamber of Commerce is celebrating.

The Lunar New Year began this year at midnight on Jan. 23. The holiday involves 15 days of celebration.

The chamber is holding a Year of the Dragon Gala along with a concert by the Chinese pianist Lang Lang, who will perform with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. The event runs from 4:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. Friday (Jan. 27) at Music Hall.

Lunar New Year is, in much of Asia, a huge holiday. In fact, if you were in China, let’s just say it would be a bad time to travel, if you could help it. For the holiday, also called Spring Festival, Chinese authorities anticipate more than 3 billion passenger trips, including 235 million train journeys. For many, especially migrant workers and students, it’s the only chance to go home and see family during the year.

In Cincinnati it is, of course, a lower-key affair, but the growing Chinese Chamber, which has about 170 members, is trying to make it a memorable one. The event will networking, a silent auction, dinner and a traditional dragon dance. Shau Zavon, president of the Chinese Chamber, anticipates about 250 attendees for the gala and as many as 400 for the concert.

Tickets are $128 for members and $148 for nonmembers. For the concert only, starting at 8 p.m., tickets are $45 for adults and $12 for kids under 16.